Coventry is the ‘worst’ for burglaries in the West Midlands

Coventry is the worst area for burglaries in the West Midlands, according to a report by the Complete University Guide (CUG) 2014.

Statistics from West Midlands police show that the area around Warwick University comes seventh in the West Midlands with 6.9 burglaries per thousand residents while the area surrounding Coventry University came first with 7.85 burglaries per thousand residents.

Peter Dunn, director of press and policy at Warwick University, advised students: “This is one of the league tables we take with a very large pinch of salt. The figures are for wards within three miles of the universities which means there is an overlap between the figures for us and Coventry University.”

Visiting Erasmus student Greta April who lived in Earlsdon was one such student whose house had been burgled in the Coventry area.

She said: “You have no idea how many of us were robbed. Two of my friends had their computers, money, cameras and jewellery stolen. The thieves were professionals because they used gloves and the police couldn’t find any prints.”

One of the victims, Marco Mennini, described the burglary: “They tried to open the door to the kitchen first then they forced the window in the living room.” Mennini was studying at Warwick as an Erasmus student from Italy and the burglary happened on his last night in England.

Four laptops, money, cameras and jewellery were stolen from the property. The students called the police and an officer arrived to take the details of the burglary. The following morning a team arrived to dust for fingerprints and take photographs. The students however had to leave as they had booked flights on that day.

The victims have contacted their insurance company and hope to be reimbursed for their losses.

Third year English Literature student Bethan Smith who lived in Earlsdon however said: “I felt way safer there than in Leamington! It was a really quiet and chilled town with a nice atmosphere actually.” She added that she had never heard of any burglaries nearby.

Chief Inspector Helen Kirkman Little, from the Coventry Police however responded to CUG’s report by claiming that her officers had successfully reduced crime in the city. “Last year saw 264 fewer victims of crime across Coventry, compared to the previous 12 months which includes significant reductions in burglary and robbery.”

The CUG report on crime around Universities does not measure offences where it is specifically students who are the victims, but measures crime in densely populated neighbourhoods within three miles of the University campuses.

A spokesman from Coventry University pointed out that given Coventry is the thirteenth largest city in the UK, the crime statistics are much lower than in other student cities. In Manchester the figure is 12.77 per thousand residents and Coventry has much less violent crime than Birmingham or Staffordshire.

Warwick University works closely with the West Midlands Police, who supply the campus with two part-time Constables and a full time Police Community Support Officer. Warwick University campus is also equipped with CCTV, and a 24/7 security team, supported by the police officers.

Peter Dunn concluded: “We are a campus university with our own security and CCTV which means parents and young people can feel confident about coming here.”

You can find out how to keep your possessions safer, and engage in the discussion on student safety on twitter @WarwickUniCop and online at www.saferstudents.co.uk.